Complete History of Cognac: A Long Way to Eau De Vie

The history of Cognac actually starts in the third century. The region and the beverage Cognac has a long history and involves all kind of nations, merchants, kings and aristocrats, natural catastrophes, wars and cold winters. Despite all this, the product kept getting better and better, century after century. Read the full history of Cognac, “the spirit of the gods”.

Related products

The first vines in the region

First century: Emperor Titus Flavius Domitianus forbids cultivating wineIII. century: Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius Probus reintroduces the law and grants the Gallic people to own vineyards and to produce wine.XII. century: Guillaume X., the Duke of Guyenne and Poitiers, orders to plant vineyards in the region of Poitou Charente.1204: First merchants from La Rochelle come to England to sell wine.1270: Salt and wine from the region of Saintonge are traded in Hamburg (Hanse).13th century: The Frapin family settles in the region of Charente.

1337: With the beginning of the 100 Year War between England and France, wine from the Charente region is exported to Great Britain.1411: First, ‘brandy’ is distilled in the region of Armagnac. The consumers are mainly farmers.1494: Francois I. (later on to become King of France) is born in Cognac. Years later, Francois will allow Cognac to trade salt by using the local rivers such as the Charente river.XI. century: Dutch merchants buy wine from the Champagne and Borderies area and ship them to the Netherlands. But they soon had to realise that wine suffers from transportation – so the Dutch started to distill the wine and call it Brandwijn. But distilling the wine was only a means for transportation, in order for them to be able to transport more. For consumption back in the Netherlands, they would add water again.

1500: Hieronymus Brunschweig from Alsace publishes the “Liber de arte destillandi” in Strasbourg: The book about the art of distilling. Even though the book deals with distilling from a medical point of view, it describes the technique of distillation.1548: Farmers and aristocrats revolt against the salt tax in France.1549: The first brandy appears in Cognac: Historian André Castelot reports about a merchant from La Rochelle, who produced four casks of good Cognac.

The word “Brandy” appears

1559: The vineyards of the Aunis region produce too much wine, as demands are much lower than the amount produced. At the same time people now know that wine suffers from too long transportation ways. The Dutch are already using wine in their distilleries, so the excess amounts of the Aunis wine are being distilled. The word Brandwijn leads to the word Brandy.1571: Second appearance of an eau-de-vie in Cognac: A Serazin purchase is noted.1624: Two Dutchmen, Van Der Boogwert and Loo Deyijck, found a distillery in Tonnay.1636: Another riot occurs: the taxes on wine were simply too high. As a consequence the farmers were not able to sell their wine.XII. century: Wine merchants test the ‘double distillation’: the eau-de-vie is distilled twice. Originally, the double distillation process was done because of lower transport costs, as it lead to less quantity and volume. This meant more space on the ships.

In the 17th century the Cognac was already transported in oak casks. This is when merchants found out that the taste of the beverage changed when stored in barrels.

The legend of the discovery of the eau-de-vie is a slightly different story: A knight (called Chevalier) lived in the area of Ségonzac and had the idea to distill wine. A little more romantic…

1638: Lewes Roberts mentions a wine called Rotchell or Cogniacke1643: Philippe Augier founds Cognac Augier, 15 years later on the company is turned into Augier Frères

Cogniack first mentioned in London Gazette

1678: Cogniack Brandy is mentioned in the London Gazette1696: Louis XIV. grants the family of Frapin a high aristocratic status18th century: first trading houses are founded. They acquire eaux-de-vie (spirits) to resell them to buyers in Northern Europe, Netherlands and England1709: The vineyards of Saintonge are destroyed by a very cold winter

1710: The historian Claude Masse claims that a man from La Rochelle invents the double distillation1715: Jean Martell founds Martell Cognac. His family comes from the island of ‘Jersey’1724: Paul-Emilie Rémy Martin and his father Jean Geay found Cognac Rémy Martin1725: Isaac Ranson founds a trading house in the town of Cognac. The goods are shipped to Ireland and Holland05.06.1731: Louis XV. forbids planting of vineyards without authorization

Cognac Export rises

1742: Cognac exports rises1762: James Delamain becomes a partner of Ransom & Delamain in Jarnac1765: James Hennessy, a former army officer under Louis XV., founds Cognac Hennessy1779: There are now ten trading houses in the centre of the town of Cognac.1783: More and more aging of Cognac takes place in oak barrels from the Limousin area1794: Hennessy exports to Northern America, New York1795: James Hennessy marries Marthe Martell; Baron Jean-Baptiste Antoine Otard and Jean Dupuy found Cognac Otard

Hine and Delamain

1797: Thomas Hine and Elisabeth Delamain marry19th century: Cognac is no longer sold in barrels but in bottles. This leads to the birth of a whole new industry: bottles, cork. By the end of the 19th century the wine fretter catastrophe happens: 280.000 hectares of wineyards go down to 40.000 hectares.1817: The classification of V.O.P. (Very old pale) and V.S.O.P. (very superior old pale) are used; Cognac Thomas Hine & Co is founded1819: Cognac Bisquit is founded by Alecandre Bisquit

1833: King Louis Philippe receives his first cask of Pineau de Charentes1835: Felix Courvoisier and Louis Gallois found Cognac Courvoisier in Jarnac1848: Poet Alfred de Vigny produces his own Cognac at La Maine Giraud1849: Martell uses for the first time labels on Cognac bottles1850: Cognac is shipped to Australia1854: The maps of the Cognac region show four different zones: Grande Champagne, Petite Champagne, Premier Bois and Deuxième Bois1855: Hennessy works together with Poilly Brigode in Folembray, the company produces bottles1856: Hennessy starts to label bottles1858: Cognac A.E. Dor is founded in Jarnac1861: Martell sells its Cognac in Shanghai, China1863: Cognac Camus is founded by Jean-Baptiste Camus1864: Hennessy registers its name and trademark: it shows an ax in a hand1865: Auguste Hennessy uses stars for his Cognacs1870: the maps of the wine region of Cognac show the zones of Fins Bois and Bons BoisEnd of 19th Century: Cognac is exported to Bombay, India

Destruction of Cognac vineyards

1872: The wine fretter appears in the region of Charente. Because of the destruction of Cognac vineyards, the Whisky market grows.1876: Courvoisier labels its bottles1877: There are about 300.000 hectares of vineyard in the region of Cognac1878: Claude Boucher introduces a technique of producing bottles1889: Cognac Frapin and Cognac Courvoisier receive gold medals at the tradeshow in Paris1890: Because of the wine fretter, the vineyards of Charente are down to 46.000 hectares and also in 1890 : Hennessy is world market leader20th century: Grape-vines are imported from Northern America, Ugni Blanc replaces Folle Blanche and Colombard. The production of Cognac become more restricted and controlled.1909: Six Cognac areas are defined by law and protected1923: Cognac brands Hennessy and Martell begin to exchange information about export markets. The knowledge agreement lasts 29 years.1927: the words Fine Champagne appear on Rémy Martin V.S.O.P. bottles1930: Cocktails with Cognac become popular1934: Courvoisier uses the historic person of Napoleon to market its Cognac1936: New rules for Cognac production: the wine for distillation must be produced out of white grapes. The addition of sugar is strictly forbidden.1946: The Bureau National Interprofessionel de Cognac (BNIC) is founded1964: Canadian Hiriam-Walker group acquires Courvoisier1967: Pernod Ricard acquires Cognac Bisquit1971: Hennessy and Moet-Chandon merge and Cognac Hine is acquired by The Distillers Limited Company1986: Allied Domecq buys Courvoisier1987: Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessy (LVMH) is founded, Hine is integrated1988: Seagram acquires Cognac Martell

US-Hiphop rescues Cognac

1993: 87.313 hectares of wine exist in the region of Cognac1990’s: Busta Rhymes releases his song “Pass the Courvoisier” which leads to a massive upshift in cognac sales in the US.2001: Seagram (Martell) is acquired by Pernod Ricard and Diageo; and Hennessy broke the sales record with 35 million bottles sold worldwide.

1995 – 2000: The market of the US becomes more and more important for the Cognac industry: Rappers and HipHop musicians make the beverage extremly popular in the US.2005: Moet Hennessy wins a trial in China: Hanlissy-Cognac is forbidden2008: LVMH acquired a 55% stake in one of China’s top producers, Wenjun Distillery.2010: China becomes the largest market for Hennessy cognacs, in terms of value.2011: Moet Hennessy has announced the planting of its first vineyard in China in partnership with Ningxia Nongken (the state owned agricultural company).

The Golden Age of Cognac

Today, Cognac is one of the most important export products of France, 98% of the produced cognac is exported. While the US became the most important market in the 90’s, in 2012 Asia, especially China, becomes the most important market for Cognac.

Pics: www.pediacognac.com

Get articles like these and more:Subscribe to our mailing list

Get our Cognac Guide in form of an e-Book for free. Weekly updates about our stories, new products and deals.

To complete the subscription process, please click the link in the email we just sent you.

We use Mailchimp as our marketing platform. By subscribing, you acknowledge that you will receive emails about Cognac and that your information will be transferred to Mailchimp for processing. Learn more about Mailchimp’s privacy practices here. You may withdraw this consent at any time. More information can be found in our privacy.

Max is a spirits expert and speaker, into marketing, technology, startups, and business development. He’s also a farmer. He likes tools and machines, Game of Thrones, and Better Call Saul. Included in his Top 10 Cognacs are the Audry XO and Bache Gabrielsen 1973.Max founded Cognac Expert in 2010 at his family’s estate in Poullignac, in the Cognac region, France. Started as a blog, today Cognac Expert is the world’s largest website about all things Cognac, a blog, and a specialized online shop featuring 800+ different Cognac bottles.

12 Comments

Perhaps one should add, that the Cognac exports and the whole market entirely changed in the 1990’s until 2005: the shift to US American markets and lately of course the Chinese and Asian growth of Cognac products.

I have heard of both Cognacs mentioned above, the brand has gone through numerous changes since its conception. Gautier is one of my favorites, in fact, it is/was one of the best Cognacs I have ever tasted. St. Martin was another one which was released briefly that I bought from a Military discount store. They had also produced “Le Poirelle” as a liquor aperitif that was out of this world. I went back to get some more but could not locate one. The bottle itself looked so elegant I did not want to open it…… Almost a year ago I picked up a bottle to treat myself, just opened it yesterday, magnifique!!!!!

I think there is a typing error in your article:
XI. century: Dutch merchants buy wine from the Champagne and Borderies …
should read in my opinion (understanding):
XVI. century … since the discovery of the Dutch dates from the 16th century!
Cheers

Social Media

Subscribe to our mailing list

Get our Cognac Guide in form of an e-Book for free. Weekly updates about our stories, new products and deals.

We use Mailchimp as our marketing platform. By subscribing, you acknowledge that you will receive emails about Cognac and that your information will be transferred to Mailchimp for processing. Learn more about Mailchimp’s privacy practices here. You may withdraw this consent at any time. More information can be found in our privacy.

About Us

We're sister and brother, Sophie and Max, and we are part of a new generation of Cognac lovers. Our dream is to rejuvenate the world of Cognac, and to get rid of the tweed and cigar image that has been associated with the spirit for so long...

Best Awarded Cognacs

Instagram

Join us. Subscribe To Our Mailing List

Get our Cognac Guide in form of an e-Book for free. Weekly updates about our
stories, new products and deals

We use Mailchimp as our marketing platform. By subscribing, you acknowledge that you will
receive emails about Cognac and that your information will be transferred to Mailchimp for
processing. Learn more about Mailchimp’s privacy practices here. You may withdraw this consent
at any time. More information can be found in our privacy.

AS SEEN IN

AWARDED

About Us

We're sister and brother, Sophie and Max, and we are part of a new generation of Cognac lovers. Our dream is to rejuvenate the world of Cognac, and to get rid of the tweed and cigar image that has been associated with the spirit for so long. Cognac has many beautiful facets: While its tradition and cultural heritage are closely tied to the French Charente-region, Cognac attracts international customers who are looking for sophistication and a unique experience.

Cognac Ages

This website is related to the promotion of alcohol, and should not be viewed by anyone below the legal age of alcohol purchase in the country of viewing. When ordering, you are required to confirm, by accepting the Terms of Sale, that you are over eighteen years of age.

Alcohol abuse can lead to addition and health hazards. Drink Responsibly.